


I'm not the kind of person that it fits

by ChestnutBrumby



Series: You're miles away but I still feel you [7]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: A bit angsty to start off with, And who with, Being apart is rough, Disguise, Don't worry though, Emails, F/M, Human Vision, Other, Realizing where you belong, Sightseeing, Two years of stolen moments, scarlet vision - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-13
Updated: 2018-07-20
Packaged: 2019-05-21 18:50:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14920949
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChestnutBrumby/pseuds/ChestnutBrumby
Summary: Vision realizes he needs to come up with a plan if he wants to keep meeting Wanda in secret. To keep her safe, he comes up with a solution he isn't at all sure about.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Visual [here](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/marvelcinematicuniverse/images/b/b4/U-GIN_Genetic_Research_Facility.png/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/1000?cb=20151211140014) of Helen's lab!

Missions were somehow both familiar and not at the same time. Wanda waited with Natasha in a small but powerful speedboat, feeling the familiar buzz of adrenaline mingling with her powers. When she was on edge they lurked closer to the surface, able to be drawn out with the slightest of motions. Wanda had never minded. It was almost like having somebody physically backing her up, somebody ready to protect her.

T'Challa had gotten word that a strike force of HYDRA operatives who used to be under the orders of Von Strucker were going to hit Helen Cho's laboratory in Seoul. Though she had moved the cradle to the new avengers facility after she began working there, there were still numerous groundbreaking projects she had been working on in her old lab that were targeted by HYDRA.

"Do you guys ever think a change of bad guys might be nice?" Sam asked conversationally. Once the action kicked in he was always all business, but Wanda knew that before he kept a string of jokes and light hearted commentary to keep team moral high. She was laser-focused herself - she owed Helen Cho. A lot. Protecting her work here was paramount.

Steve cleared his throat to get Sam's attention, though he knew as well as Wanda Sam's pre-battle routines. "Sam, how's it looking from up there?"

"All clear so far."

"Nat?"

Natasha brought up a scan of the surrounding harbor on a portable holographic screen. Wanda felt a pang, watching her. It had always used to be Vision's task to monitor their environment and relay information, given his capacity to do so wirelessly. "There's incoming - two boats, from the northeast."

"Sam?"

"On it."

Nat scanned the horizon. "We'll clean up anything he misses."

Wanda sat back, the sensation of their boat speeding over the water that surrounded the lab making her edgy. She had never really had anything to do with boats, but she wasn't surprised Natasha could steer one as well as she adapted to almost any situation.

Wanda focused, trying to sense any clues from the minds on the incoming watercraft. She winced and squinted at the harsh afternoon light beating off the water, bringing up a hand to shade her eyes. Even the air smelled different over the bay, crisp yet unfamiliar.

"Why couldn't these bad guys be more considerate and attack at dawn like normal villains." She muttered peevishly, making Sam laugh when he caught that over their comms. "There's seven HYDRA operatives." She shouted over the sound of whipping wind and waves to Natasha. The older woman shot her a small smirk. "Guess they didn't think we'd be here or they'd have brought more men."

The seven weren't nearly enough, making Natasha's words prophetic. Sam took out one of the two boats and only four operatives made it to the shore, perhaps foolishly thinking the two woman would be easy to overcome.

Natasha KO'd the first man with her classic takedown move, leaping and wrapping her legs around his neck. Wanda hit the next two with a hex bolt each that blew them back into the water, where she purposefully held them under just long enough to get them panicking, intending to make them forget all about their mission. Grimly Wanda then let them flounder to the surface, spluttering. She would much rather terrify her enemies into retreat than have to kill people or have to hurt them. Natasha hit the last man standing with a stinger, and when he tumbled back into the water his gurgling scream convinced the two Avengers that was probably pretty painful.

Natasha was pretty morally okay with causing pain.

Sam landed behind them, his wings folding. "Nice work ladies. Let's check out the perimeter."

Several hours later when it had been assured that Helen's staff were unharmed and their defenses hadn't been breached, Wanda sat quietly on the shore beside the boat, waving off Steve when he came to check on her.

"I'm fine, Steve. Go and finish up. I'll be ready." Steve crouched by her, his blue eyes filled with worry. "You just let me know if there's problems, okay? I just need to check in with two more employees then we're done, and headed to Beijing." He looked down at her with that 'I would hug you if it wasn't for the Raft' look of his. One of the aversions from her time strapped in a straitjacket was Wanda was far more aware of her personal space now - even with Natasha and her boys.

Oddly, she never minded _Vision_ touching her.

"Wanda?" The concern Steve held for her, even at the tail-end of a mission, reminded Wanda just how lucky she was.

A fugitive on the run she might be, but she knew people safe and bored at home who lived their whole lives without knowing a friend like Steve Rogers. She smiled at him and pressed a very fleeting touch to his wrist. " _Go_ , Steve. I'm fine, really."

But maybe she wasn't because right after he left to tie up the last few loose ends she felt her muscles tighten and adrenaline flood her. Crimson sparks crackled faintly at her fingertips. Exactly the way they did when she was facing something inherently dangerous, just like the sensations she'd felt at the start of the mission.

She scanned, assessing, trying to locate the threat. The area immediately around her was deserted. A bird perched in the bare boughs of the tree closest to her, singing a warbling song. Muted conversation reached her ears, nobody shouting warnings or sending out the slightest trace of heightened emotions like fear or alarm. Wanda realized then that hadn't perceived danger for herself at all.

It was Vision.

 

* * *

 

 

Vision was faintly surprised when they set upon him. He was not currently embarked on a mission, or even back in Europe, ready for another meeting with Wanda.

That was precisely where he wished he was though, when two men and three women surprised him three steps outside the department store. The closest of them, who pulled of all things a crowbar from her guitar case, was first to swing at him. It was such an unexpected attack and a well calculated motion that Vision didn't phase in time and he let out a surprised grunt as the end of the crowbar impacted his lower chest.

The skin around the Mindstone furrowed as he dropped the bag in his hand. He heard breaking. Vision had intended to bring Wanda a gift on his next trip, but the cracking of grass despite the protective housing it had been boxed in told him it had completely shattered. His body, tougher than that of a regular person, didn't take as much damage with a blow that would have shattered ribs otherwise. But it still hurt, an uncomfortable sensation. However, by the time the woman's accomplices charged, he was ready, for the attack if not the verbal onslaught.

"Freak!"

"You walking blasphemer!

"Stay off our streets, killing machine!"

"Come on, you inhuman bastard!"

Sparring with his teammates had prepared him for the easiest way to dodge blows using his phasing ability to either become intangible or solidify to an extent their flying fists and primitive weapons only glanced off him. Vision was careful not to hurt any of them, aware of the shocked crowd of onlookers gathering, many holding up their phones and filming.

The phase-and-solidify factor of the fight rapidly brought back a far more uncomfortable memory of fighting Clint Barton, phasing past the archer's fists. Not wishing to relive that, Vision's patience began to wear thin.

"Enough!" He knocked the first woman back unharmed and then trapped the two men back to back, pinned in his arms. One of the other woman spat at him. Vision had never encountered such a thing before. He'd never seen such an ugly expression, even though with her hazel eyes and round face the woman would otherwise have been considered quite conventionally pretty. Hoping he had made his point he released both men and stepped back, his entire body tense and uncomfortable.

"It'll be enough when you piss off! We don't want any more of Tony Stark's damn robots in this city, you hear me!" Snarled one of the men in parting, and Vision felt the impact far more keenly than the crowbar.

But they left, and for a few seconds Vision struggled for composure as the people, staying well back, stared with various expressions of shock, sympathy and caution. Nobody was quite brave enough to approach him though.

"I apologize for disturbing your evening." He spoke heavily to the crowd, and he lifted off the ground, leaving a forgotten gift box behind with a few shards of glass spilling out.

He had gotten only two minutes into the journey back to the compound when Wanda called him.

"Vis! Are you okay?" He was quick to sooth her fears, feeling them as acutely as if she stood next to him with an active connection forged between their minds. Wanda was always easiest to read when she was afraid, perhaps because it affected Vision in turn. It always had, even that very first time he'd experienced it, before he was even truly alive, in the cradle when she had read his mind the first time. He'd felt it again a short time after that, amplified, when Pietro died. "Yes Wanda, there was simply a small incident when I was-" He hesitated slightly. He had been going to reply _shopping for you_ but he now realized he had abandoned the gift in the wake of the attack. A frown touched his face. He has wasted time, money, and left litter on a New York street. All in all, not his most productive evening.

"While I was in town." He continued. "It appears there are still some people who regard Mr. Stark with suspicion, and myself by association."

"Tell me everything." Wanda's voice was calmer now, assured that he wasn't in any real danger. He appreciated that she didn't immediately agree with the negative sentiments in regards to Mr. Stark.

Wanda was silent for almost an entire minute after he explained. He could picture her scowling when she did speak again.

"Those people were wrong, Vision. You have every right to be in town, after everything you've done to protect people, to save the world."

"Not everybody sees it that way." He replied a little sadly. Others were entitled their their opinions. Positive and negative alike. He could only hope to influence them more in favour of the former.

"I want to see you." Wanda declared boldly. Vision felt an unexpected sensation course through him. As if he had become a compass swinging around to true north. It was familiar to him only from a few moments in his life.

When he located Wanda in the falling ruins of Novi Grad. When she fell after Rhodes' sonic attack. And in Paris. He thought it might have been _longing._

It was so difficult being away from Wanda. They had spent over a year together, training, on missions, doing nominal but very enjoyable activities at home. And he knew their meetings were repairing whatever it was between them, however slowly. He had never been able to quite apply the perfect classification to their relationship. It was a friendship, certainly, but it was a deeper, much more different friendship than the one he shared with Pepper Potts or Sam Wilson. It was not... he had never dared to use the word _romance_ even in his own mind, not until recently.

She was just the person who knew him best. In the end that was all he was certain of.

Vision was touched by the sound of fierce devotion in her voice. "And I you. But there is something I need to do first."

She exhaled, unhappy, but reluctantly agreeing. "All right. But if you need me, call, all right?"

"Of course Wanda." He hesitated, and his voice softened. "I- I miss you."

He regretting saying it when he heard something akin to a tiny sniffle form her connection. Making Wanda cry was unthinkable, and he felt a flash of guilt. But after a moment Wanda answered in a small voice. "Miss you too, Vis."

"Next week. Summer Place?"

"I'll be there."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I sort of skimmed over Vision's actual project because I'm not really very technologically minded, and there's still some debate over how Vision achieved the human disguse in the first place, so forgive me there :)   
> Also I know if you squint the timeline here doesn't fully match up to Homecoming, but I really wanted to start including more of the team in this series and I have this headcanon it took Tony a while to actually work past his issues (something classicly he hasn't been good at) into talking properly to Vision again. So Peter it was here!

Vision never did make it to Summer Palace. A small riot broke out at the airport when he attempted to leave. The police who dealt with the unruly mob who opposed his being there were actually very polite to him, considering the scene he had unwittingly been the cause of. But in the end, they suggested he find alternative forms of transport rather than busy airports, and a rather crestfallen Vision retreated from JFK unharmed physically, but rather worse for wear otherwise.

 

He had to talk to Mr. Stark to find a solution, to help hone an idea already churning thoughtfully in his head. Vision thought at first that he would ask to borrow one of the jets, since he was a perfectly competent pilot. But Mr. Stark would surely want to know the why, the where - and Vision also knew he'd made progress with tracking his own jets in stealth mode after loosing Dr. Banner. He could not leave a trail that would lead Mr. Stark to Wanda.

 

He wondered for a moment if he ought to go look for Pepper to ask her advice on what had happened, and then he felt foolish when he remembered. She and Tony were still 'on a break' which Vision didn't entirely understand. But both the Avengers Tower and the compound in Westchester seemed odd and empty without Pepper's soothing, familiar presence.

Without her, Mr Stark had been... distant lately. Worried about Col. Rhodes, it was sure, but Vision was certain the problem extended back further before that, when he and Miss Potts had begun said 'break'. He decided that the stress was only compounding, and regretfully decided to delay talking to Mr. Stark for a few more days.

Vision wandered absently through several walls, a habit Wanda always used to chastise him for when she caught him. It was part of the many conversations and subsequent lessons they had about blending in to society. Though sometimes he had lapsed, hovering thoughtfully in a corner while he pondered the mysteries of the human psyche. Whenever Wanda caught him doing that, she would take his hand and tug him back down to earth. Then take him to her different 'thinking' places, such as the roof of the tower or the compound, or a quiet spot in the garden. Vision looked down at his hands now, his memory replaying exactly how it felt to have Wanda's hand holding his.

He had tried calling her twice without any luck, and so he composed a regretful email to her.

_Good morning Wanda,  
I wish to convey my sincerest apologies in that I will not be able to make our agreed upon rendezvous on this occasion. There was another small incident at the airport when I was preparing to depart, which resulted in the authorities asking me to keep a lower profile while traveling. I fully intend to make alternative arrangements, but there is something I must work upon first. _

_I find myself feeling rather lost in rooms that once seemed so vibrant and full of life, and I now realize they seemed that way because of your presence here._

_Please, do not give up on me. If you still desire my company, I will find a way._  
_Yours,_  
_Vision_

It was a few hours before a response came.

  
_Vision,_  
_Sorry I missed your calls and took so long to reply, Sam and I had a mission. It went well, and we're both okay._

_You know Vis, you're so silly. There is nothing in the world I desire like your company, don't you know that by now? Every time I go on a mission I look around for you, expecting it to be like old times. I trust Sam, Natasha and of course Steve with my life. But it's not the same as when I had you to watch my back._

_I miss you every day,  
Wanda _

 

Vision had wound up in the Research and Development wing of the compound. Though he rarely had any need to interact with any of the projects Mr. Stark was constantly working upon, today he had a specific focus. He was a little touched when Dum-E wandered over to him as if to greet him, and smiled faintly at the friendly robot as it beeped softly at him. Vision patted the top of Dum-E's 'hand' with affection. He was not familiar enough with the signs of loneliness to recognize them in himself.

He brought up one of the holographic screens, and with Dum-E hovering attentively at his shoulder, he began to research.

Over the following two weeks as he worked upon his project, he both spoke to and exchanged emails with Wanda on a regular basis. Until he could see her again, Vision felt that it was the only thing keeping him sane and connected with the world.

 

 _Dear Vision,_  
_I saw the northern lights for the first time an hour ago. Jane always used to tell me it was one of her favourite sights in either of the worlds she'd been on. But even though they were unearthly beautiful, I couldn't help but wish you were with me. It would have been really special then._

_Hurry up with your mission, Vis. I want to watch the northern lights with you sitting beside me._

_Thinking of you,_  
_Wanda_

_Dear Wanda,_  
_From all I have been told, the Aurora borealis is indeed a spectacular sight to behold. It is my wish that we shall someday soon watch them together. My work is progressing, but I was abused verbally when I went to the store to fetch something for dinner. Colonel Rhodes assured me that the lasagna tasted just fine without tomatoes, but I am not sure if he was merely trying to spare my feelings._  
_I remember cooking for you. You never lost patience with me. I long to be able to continue to do so._  
_Yours,_  
_Vision._

 _Dear Vis,_  
_We're in Italy. It's so beautiful here, I wish I could properly explain how the light looks over the hillsides, or the scent of mandarins in the air. It's another one of those times I just wish we could be experiencing it together. Sam speaks fluent Italian, and orders for us whenever we go and get food. He ordered Natasha what he called an Italian specialty called finanziera, which comprises of a rooster's face and testicles._  
_He and Steve laughed all day until Natasha threatened to drop them both into the Tiber. I wouldn't admit it to Natasha, but I didn't mind the joke. It's been so long since I heard the boys laugh._  
_Oh! And everything closes down for two hours in the middle of the day! Shops, services, everything. I couldn't believe it._  
_I hope things are going well for you. Have you talked to Tony yet? Is Rhodey doing okay?_

 _Miss you,_  
_Wanda_

_Dear Wanda,_  
_I tried to do so yesterday evening. Mr. Stark informed me that he had 'a petrol bomb of a fire that General Ross lit under the UN' to put out and was too busy. I believe that while he spoke the truth, he is also avoiding me and was using the situation as an excuse not to speak to me. The lab is too quiet without his obnoxious music blaring. Colonel Rhodes is undergoing an operation that he and Mr. Stark are hopeful will help restore some of his mobility, though until it's conclusion we won't know for sure._  
_There was a storm here last night. It made me think of you, the way you could never sleep through them. I found you the first time there was one at Stark Tower soon after you arrived, and we watched it together from the window. I marveled when you finally fell asleep once it was over, with your head on my shoulder. Nobody had ever shown me that sort of trust before._

 _I miss you as well. Every day._  
_Vision_

 _Dear Vis,_  
_You always looked out for me. Even when I didn't want to talk, you still knew when I didn't want to be alone. I never minded you phasing through the floor or the ceiling to appear the way you did, even though I scolded you. I knew you did it because you always understood when I needed you most, and you took the quickest path to get to me._  
_I wish we were watching storms now. I think of you when one happens here as well._

_I wish you could give Rhodes my best. I even found this get-well card for him. But Sam says it's too risky to contact him - still. I wish he could know I was thinking of him. I have to go and get ready for a mission, but I'll call you afterwards and let you know I'm all right._

_Love,_  
_Wanda_

_My dearest Wanda,_  
_I don't play chess anymore. I remember when the nights grew cold and we couldn't stay out late and continue flying practice like we did during the summer, so instead you and I played chess together almost every night. You never once used your powers to read my mind, even though it meant I beat you more often than not. And the few times I did try deliberately to allow you to win as an exercise in morale, you always knew and you scolded me for it. Every time I see that chessboard, I picture you moving the pieces with your scarlet glow. I cannot even pass by it without missing you._

 _Every day I regret the events that came to see us separated._  
_Yours,_  
_Vision_

_Dear Vis,_  
_I know exactly what you mean._  
_I don't regret going with Clint. I don't regret going to help Steve. At least, not in the sense that I made the wrong choice or would have made me want to choose differently. I never would have wanted to have been locked in the compound while Steve fought to save the world, like he always does. That's why I joined the Avengers in the first place. It why I joined HYDRA before that. Because I wanted to fight for what was right. I didn't want to be helpless. And I'm not anymore._

_But I regret what happened between us. I regret not being able to see you every day._

_I miss the sound of your laugh more than any sound in the world._

_Love,_  
_Wanda_

"Hey, uh, Vision?"  
A little surprised, Vision turned to find Peter Parker on the stairs. He carefully hit the shortcut to save his progress on his work and turned to wave the teenager fully into the room.

"Mr Parker, please, come in." Peter had begun to come down the stairs, looking relieved at the greeting and the friendly gesture from Vision. But he winced at being referred to that way.

"You can just call me Peter. Please." There was an imploring note that reached Vision in the young man's voice, but when he looked up Peter's expression looked normal. Vision nodded. "Of course - Peter. I regret that my work has kept me busy enough we have not gotten to know one another prior to now."

Close up, Peter was eyeing Vision with the enthusiasm he had seen some people his age reserve for a new PlayStation 4 console game. Or the way Peter himself looked at the Iron Spider suit the few times Vision had caught him peeking at it. But the boy was so guileless, almost awed, that Vision found that he wasn't offended in any way.

"Oh! That's okay. Um. I did - I do sorta have some bad news though." Now Peter looked distinctly uncomfortable, running his hand through his hair then twisting his fingers nervously together.

Vision could guess. "Mr. Stark isn't coming?" He had arranged today to work with Tony to fine-tune the last calculations on his work. Peter confirmed this with a hesitant nod.

"There was this disaster in Florida, and he said it would be better if he handled it alone. Because, um, you know, people have been kinda... jerks to you lately in public and he's working on it, well he has the PR team working on it, and he says it's getting better." He paused. "He didn't let me come either." Peter looked defeatedly at the floor. "As usual."

Vision surveyed the dejected teenager and felt much the same way. He fought for something to say, wishing he could telepathically reach out to Wanda and ask her for some pointers on small talk with teenage boys, but it was Peter who broke the silence.

"So uh. What were you working on anyway?"

"I've been conducting research into how best to arrange a molecular restructuring of my external features in conjunction with nanotechnology in order to fully construct a visage to portray myself as an individual who would pass as an ethnological member of society."

Peter blinked several times rapidly. "You want to look more human?" He seemed, for some reason, faintly concerned, and after some hesitation he continued. "You know... there's nothing wrong with the way you look. You know. Now. Naturally. It's... you." Peter waved an uncertain hand towards Vision.

Vision's own hands went still, but after a moment, he smiled quietly. "Thank you, Peter."

"So... why are you doing it?"

Vision hesitated. He was not conditioned to telling untruths. "I wish to be able to enter the public eye without the disturbances that have become more common since the Accords." It was the truth, but phrased in a way that made Vision uncomfortable for suggesting alternative motives.

That seemed to relax Peter a little. "Right! Makes sense, yeah. So - do you want some help?"

Vision did not have to deliberate over her reply. "I would appreciate that a great deal, Peter."


	3. Chapter 3

Wanda leaned her elbows on the edge of the wall, staring outwards. The man-made structure stretched grandly on either side of her, and yet despite its impressive span and the majesty every other tourist there was admiring, Wanda was having trouble concentrating on her surroundings.   
  
The next mission was in the works, and her mind kept drifting to that instead of allowing herself to be in the moment. Wanda had spent a day with the others going over schematics and blueprints and security, deciding which aspects were vulnerable to which team member. The following day, they would leave for Portugal. Steve had given everybody the day off and Wanda had come to the Great Wall, not wanting to miss the opportunity since she didn't know when they would next be in this part of the continent.   
  
It had been a week since she last spoke to Vision and over a month since she saw him, and he was the other primary thought occupying her mind. Wanda could no longer deny the truth within herself. Being away from Vision was a real struggle. Her feelings for him were only growing in his absence, the longing like something tangible she could harness. In her mind she ran over a thousand scenarios, trying to figure things out. She thought about her teammates and the Accords and even, selfishly, she even considered going back. Stark, who didn't know her as well as Steve, Sam and Natasha did, might be fooled by her insistence she wanted to be on the right side of the law, that she had made a mistake. Likewise the boy who had joined his side, the one Vision had befriended, he wouldn't have the basis for comparison. Rhodey, now Rhodey would be more difficult to deceive. He had been her teammate, and he knew her better. He had sparred with her, gone on missions with her, knew some of her tells.   
  
Wanda braced her palms on the wall and staring unseeingly out over the countryside. She felt guilty even thinking about turning her back on Steve. T'Challa had been feeding them information of issues across Europe, HYDRA cells, Oscorp expansions, and other suspect activity. Steve was serious about continuing the work of the Avengers even though technically, they could no longer call themselves that. She heard an echo of his words in her head. _The world is still a vulnerable place_.   
  
And Steve... Steve was different since he had left Bucky in Wakanda. He seemed older, somehow, which was ridiculous because Wanda knew very well he aged different to other people.  But she knew he was hurting. Missing Bucky, and even though she stayed out of his mind it was all too easy to compare the way he missed his best friend to the way she missed hers. She wouldn't see him loose another friend on top of Bucky and the split from the Avengers. No, Wanda had chosen her side, and though she remained resentful there even had to be sides in the first place, she was sticking to hers.   
  
It was also duty that kept her getting through each day without Vision. It was more now, than the knowledge that the boys and Natasha needed her. Wanda had never had such fine control over her powers. As if denying them in the Raft had allowed them to bloom in the freedom afterwards, Wanda had more control, more raw power, even a better understanding of how her powers worked. It meant she was an integral part of the team, able to achieve things that the soldiers and spies couldn't. She was helping people, instead of hurting them. Wanda knew in her heart she was in the right place. To give that up now, to go back to being Tony Stark's prisoner, even if it meant seeing Vision every day... she couldn't.   
  
But it didn't stop her missing Vision with a fierce awareness the path she had chosen also meant she could only see him fleetingly. In the quiet evenings when she wrapped herself in her blankets and prepared to sleep, Wanda thought of Clint putting an arm around Laura and the way they leaned into one another. She saw one or the other parent lifting Nathaniel and whirling the laughing baby boy in a joyous circle while he clapped his hands in glee. A family outing to the local park, the older kids laughing on the playground equipment and the baby watching everything solemnly as his parents pushed his pram around swingsets and merry-go-rounds. Wanda had always treasured the days off from training she spent in the Barton household.   
  
It had taken her some time to realize she wasn't just recalling these specific sort of memories with the Bartons solely because she missed her adopted family. Now, Wanda realized she wanted the impossible. She was thinking of a day with no Accords, no fracture, a day when she would no longer be considered a fugitive. She wanted all of that herself, and she wanted it with a man it might well be impossible for. And yet she knew with each beat of her heart that her soul had already decided just who was its mate.   
  
She didn't want anybody else. Just Vision.   
  
She hastily drew away from the crowds of tourists when she realized there were tears in her eyes. She didn't want to draw attention to herself, even though the top of the wall contained a steady flow of tourists, none of whom were really paying her any attention, too engrossed with pictures and posting them on social media and buying souvenirs. Wanda withdrew to where a set of crates and packaging material had been stacked, leaning back against them out of the public eye and trying to sort out just what her future held.   
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Vision was nervous. "Mr Stark...?" He questioned, knocking hesitantly on the door. There was a faint mumble that didn't really resemble any actual spoken word, but Vision mustered his courage and opened the door.   
  
Mr. Stark was lying in a curled position on his expansive bed, seeming to have missed several days worth of shaving. "Ja-" He cut himself off. "Vision." He corrected.   
  
Vision knew he slipped up like that sometimes, especially if he had been indulging in alcoholic beverages. This, considering the particular scent of him at that current time, was how Vision figured Tony had spent his previous evening.   
  
"Mr. Stark - how did the Florida mission go?"   
  
There was a groan. "They lived." Vision quickly preformed a scan of the news and deducted that Tony's actions had saved sixteen bystanders when a Ten Rings operative had tried to hijack a bus. What puzzled him was that the criminal in question had escaped. It wasn't like Mr. Stark to allow a guilty party to go free. He couldn't think of how to phrase the question of why and how it had happened carefully enough.   
  
"I wondered if I might trouble you for a moment."   
  
Mr. Stark looked back so blankly, Vision felt guilty for even intruding in the first place. He reached up and scrubbed a hand uncertainly over his face as if he were trying to figure out what he was doing, or why Vision had come to him in at all. Vision would never betray Mr. Stark's trust in such a way, but he wished in that moment he could share an image of the downtrodden man curled in on himself, rough and ready and entirely to be pitied, to anybody who labeled him callous or unfeeling. It was plainly clear to Vision that Mr. Stark felt things far, far too keenly, and that was the purpose of his attempt to escape via his drinking. To Vision, his suffering could not have been clearer.    
  
If Wanda were here, she would help him come up with a plan of action for Vision explain to Mr. Stark that these sorrow-driven actions were never going to win him back Pepper Potts. (She would have complained about them having to try to salvage Tony Stark's love life, but she would have helped him - helped them - regardless). Vision felt a pang of longing himself, thinking of Miss Potts. Like Wanda, she had a way of understanding, only everybody instead of just him. He missed the steadying presence she had on Mr. Stark but also the way she would look out for everybody on the team. She had always been particularly comfortable with him. Miss Potts had taught Vision how to make Wanda's tea, organized movie nights, been there for the team after difficult missions.  
  
But now, without either Wanda or Miss Potts to turn to for guidance, Vision grasped at what to say that might reach the man sprawled sideways across the bed. Mr. Stark was the one to speak first, misinterpreting Vision's troubled silence.   
  
"Oh. Your little science project, right. Sorry Vision, I've had too much on to come and see it. You got it figured out, yeah?"   
  
"Yes, I just... wished to tell you it was complete." It was not the whole truth, and it made Vision uncomfortable to be telling half truths, but so did the way his insides seemed to tighten at the words little science project.    
  
"Good. That's good." Tony groaned and rolled over. Vision felt more uncomfortable by the minute when the silence spanned afterwards. He hesitated to voice another question. "Would it be all right if I took a few days off at the end of the week? Do you think you will need me?"   
  
Tony blinked groggily. "Huh? Oh no, go ahead. Take a transponder so I can reach you though." Vision supposed it was a good thing, even if he felt a flash of some difficult emotion for him to identify. He tried to take solace in the fact that he had been asked to keep a communicator on him. However, it was difficult to feel he had anything of value to offer when Mr. Stark showed no interest in where he was going.    
  
Vision couldn't have replied, of course, but it was almost as if Mr. Stark didn't actually _care_ where he would be.   
  
"Thank you, Mr. Stark." Vision said instead, then withdrew, heading down the long, well-lit corridors of the compound alone. He ought to have headed directly for the lab where he was supposed to meet Peter after he finished school. He had been telling Vision more about his friends while they worked lately, and he found the day to day stories fascinating. But something caught his eye as he passed, and he found himself stepping into the kitchen, recalling his disastrous attempt to make paprikash for Wanda, how ashamed he had felt of himself when the realization dawned on her face that he wasn't letting her leave the compound. He recalled every detail - the clothes she had worn, the shirt in dark green that highlighted the colour of her eyes, one short and one long necklace. The way she had smiled so easily around him, the sound of her laugh.   
  
Perhaps because he was already thinking of her, it was all too clear when the emotion filtered strongly through the mental connection he shared with Wanda. Usually when they were so far apart he got barely more than the faintest of impressions from their link, and he was instantly flooded with worry. The distinction between if it belonged to Wanda or himself was irrelevant.   
   
He felt it so acutely that he was in motion before he even properly registered it, phasing through the floor into the lab. He sent Peter a quick text apologizing for having to leave early, gathered the tiny device that would allow him to project an image in conjunction with his own phasing powers, then went straight outside through the wall of the compound, greeted by a brisk breeze. The air smelt like apples and fresh blooming clover and a rainstorm on the horizon. It all went largely unnoticed, however observant Vision usually was.   
  
Wanda needed him.   
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Wanda had to move eventually. The day had worn on, but her melancholy lingered. She should go back to her current motel and check in with Steve and Sam. Natasha was currently in the US visiting Clint and his family, but she never minded spending time with Steve and Sam. Especially since Clint had promised photos - he wasn't the only Barton Wanda missed. Still, she found herself dragging her feet. She had to pick her spirits up before she went back to her boys, because both of them were sensitive to her moods and would know there was something up. She wanted to keep seeing Vision, and that meant keeping things secret from Steve and Sam, at least until she figured out a way to make this work. It was a little frightening, how quickly she had readjusted to having Vision back in her life. Last time she had trusted anybody as absolutely as him... well.   
  
She paid little attention to the crowds on the wall, at least until a familiar mind caught her attention. The rush of relief and joy was instant enough to bring a smile to her face - Vision! He was here?! She turned, not as fast as she wanted, conscious of the need to remain low key, and not attract attention. But Wanda became instantly more aware of the faces around her, scanning visually and mentally.   
  
Without spotting him.   
  
It puzzled her, a slight frown tugging at her lips. She was _certain_ she could sense Vision close by. She knew the sensation of his mind so well. But the background buzz of emotions that reached her from the tourists didn't indicate anything to cause curiosity or alarm, like spotting a well-known Avenger or simply a caped man with crimson and silver skin walking through their midst.   
  
Could she be wrong? She was rarely wrong when it came to Vision. She was too in tune with him, and he to her. She began to seek his location a bit more ardently with her powers, walking close to the edge of the wall, pretending to look out at the view. She hated actively scanning so many people, their thoughts a blurred rush of sights and sounds and memories - after the Ultron Offensive, she hadn't spend a lot of time inside anyone's mind, except Vision's. She dipped her head and brought the cap on her head down lower to hide the faint scarlet light in her eyes as she actively scanned.   
  
Anxiety. Vision was afraid of something. She hadn't pinpointed him yet but the spiked tension of his nervousness was incredible strong, so he couldn't be that far. Wanda didn't quite understand how nobody else was reacting, but if anyone was hurting him, or giving him a hard time, they'd soon have her to deal with, her cover be damned. Like hell she was going to let anybody hurt her Vision.   
  
_Vis, are you here? Are you safe!?_  
  
He must have been close to hear the silent but urgent question she extended.   
  
_Wanda, yes, I am quite well. All things considered._ The bloom of his anxiety only deepened despite his reassurance, but at least now Wanda wasn't picturing him with an entire taskforce of government agents bearing down on him. She still didn't understand. Until she passed a blonde man, who she might not have glanced twice at, except for two things. He towered over her by almost a foot. And despite the fact he looked like an ordinary person, he shared several physical characteristics in common with the man she had been thinking about almost constantly.   
  
She halted so abruptly somebody bumped into her shoulder and complained in Chinese as they detoured around her, but Wanda spun around too fast to pay attention.   
  
The blonde man half-turned and lifted both hands and ran them nervously back through his soft hair, but it was when he brought his hands back down in front of him Wanda knew for sure. Because for a split second, he gazed down at his upturned palms in a way she knew well. Her Vision didn't have this man's pale eyebrows, but the skin above his eyes did convey the same furrowed emotion when he was distressed. It was him.   
  
" _Vis_!"   
  
Finally he looked up and turned his body properly to face her, shyly meeting her gaze and offering a smile - her smile. She'd known the moment she caught him staring contemplatively at his hands but that convinced her more than anything. The faint impression of dimples close to the edges of his lips were the same.   
  
"Hello Wanda." So was his voice. It was a little lower pitched than normal, but she could tell that was because he was nervous, not because of... whatever he'd done to look like this. Wanda closed the two steps between them, her own eyes wide as she stared at him.   
  
"Vis... you're..."   
  
He gulped, and very human blue eyes gazed anxiously at her. Missing the complex fine gears and the exact cyan-shades Wanda knew so well, they still held the same fathomless depth. She knew she was seeking familiarity in the face of the stranger who wasn't a stranger at all.   
  
"I wanted to call and and explain before, before I got here, but I didn't know how to even begin and I wasn't sure if I ought to surprise you or not." He confessed. Wanda stretched out a hand to him, though her fingertips never actually made contact with his face.   
  
"Why did you do this?"   
  
Since Wanda hadn't broken off the active connection of their minds, Vision chose to tackle that question privately. _Well, I knew if we were continue to meet, we would either have to resign ourselves to staying out of the public eye altogether, or I could work on my projection_.    
  
"You did this for me?" She thought about asking if his disguise was stable enough for psychical contact, but when Vision nervously licked his lips and ran his hand through his short blonde hair, making it stand up in adorable untidy ruffles, Wanda decided she'd rather find out the hard way.   
  
"For us." He corrected with a smile, still nervous, but with a distinct yearning behind those nerves. That did it. _Us_. Wanda threw her arms around his neck and kissed him ardently. Vision let out a small puff of air in surprise against her lips, and Wanda broke off to smile.  
  
"Wow. I mean... I wish you didn't have to." A frown threatened to overtake her features, but only momentarily. She was still too entranced to find Vision looking this way. "But it's impressive. And very sweet."   
  
He grinned bashfully, his gaze dropping, still the same Vision. His anxiety hadn't quite abated altogether, and Wanda could tell it stemmed from the disguise he had chosen. He felt as if he was hiding as something he technically was not.   
  
"I missed you." She told him next, and determined to assure him he was still her Vision no matter what he looked like, Wanda very deliberately took his face between both her hands and brought their lips back together, moving slower this time. He sighed blissfully into the kiss, finally letting go of his tension and apprehension. He still tasted exactly the same, she noticed with amusement. And his lips against hers moved with the same tentative eagerness to please she had gotten to know well.    
  
"And I you, Wanda." He assured her when they parted, but Wanda didn't let go of his face even after they broke apart. She carefully stroked her fingertips over his skin as she learned the new disguise. She found she missed the faint lines she knew so well and the feeling of the patches of subtly-textured skin, as well as the contrasting smoothness of vibrainum. His ears bemused her for a moment, making him smile, but most of all she found she missed the little silver dash on his chin.   
  
"You knew it was me." Vision observed, smiling shyly as her fingers traced his left cheek. He anchored her hand for a moment, just long enough to turn his head and press a kiss to her palm. His nerves had now faded into a dull background buzz, and Wanda was foremost aware now of his relief and pleasure at being reunited.   
  
"I'd know you anywhere."   
  
He hadn't really stopped smiling but those words refreshed the expression broadly.   
  
"How are you doing it? It's something more than just your phasing ability isn't it?"   
  
Vision nodded to that and produced a small device no larger than the chapstick Wanda was carrying in her bag. Wanda inspected it with interest, even if she felt a sudden jolt of uncertainty looking down at it. She was to caught up in her reunion with Vision and the new disguise he wore to analyze why.   
  
"This is a prototype device of a stabilizer Mr. Stark was using for his nanosuits." He explained. "I am phasing the disguise, but such a complex visage required the help of technology." He slid the stabilizer back into his pocket. Wanda had a hard time looking away from his face, watching the movements as he spoke.   
  
"So it works? I mean, you didn't have another airport drama?"   
  
Vision had the grace to look ashamed of himself, hanging his head a little. "Well-" He looked Wanda in the eye with an abashed smile. "After so long apart, I may have flown here stealth mode in a quinjet."   
  
"...That Tony knows you have, right?"   
  
Vision fidgeted uncomfortably and opened his mouth wordlessly. "Vis! I feel like I'm starting to be a bad influence on you." Wanda scolded, but she was secretly more than a little pleased by the lengths Vision had taken to come to her.   
  
His lips curved in a smile. "Starting?" He was pleased when Wanda laughed and the sound encouraged him to join in, noticing how fascinated she was at the way laughter played over his face.   
  
"I don't know weather to be flattered by that or annoyed with you." Wanda took Vision's hand and began to lead him through the crowds. The foot traffic had thinned out a little, given night was falling and the temperatures with it.   
  
"I think I'd prefer the former." Yes, his smile was exactly the same as in his natural form. "I fear had we been apart any longer I simply would have flown here with nothing more than my abilities, and I did promise Mr. Stark I would not incur the wrath of various governments by intruding upon their airspace in breach of the Accords."    
  
"I'm pretty sure there's a clause somewhere in there about cloaked private jets." Wanda pointed out wryly.   
  
Vision smiled sheepishly as they walked. He couldn't help but feel some amazement that this was actually working according to plan, that he was walking along the top of the Great Wall of China, with Wanda, without a single person casting therm a second glance.   
  
"How do you feel?" Wanda asked curiously, his thoughts a little less obvious to her now he had more or less settled.   
  
"Odd. It is a strange feeling to project the image of something you are not." Vision confessed, voicing his thoughts from earlier. Wanda tugged sternly on his arm. "Hey. Enough of that - we've talked about this." She paused for only a beat before a silent echo of her voice sounded within Vision's mind.   
  
_You're as human as anyone here_. Even though Vision did not entirely agree, he did not want to press the topic after so long away from Wanda. Not when there was an entire other motivation for his visit - beyond that of simply enjoying their time together.    
  
"Well. In truth, I came because I wanted to ask you something."    
  
"Anything." She turned to look up at him as they walked. Vision's nervousness was increasing - she didn't need to read it in his mind, it was plain to be seen in the way he played with her fingers, grasped for words and ran his free hand through his hair again.   
  
"I, well I, understand that the social norm of two people becoming a couple is to agree upon a relationship, and though of course I would not wish to presume in any way, I profess I have been greatly enjoying our meetings, Wanda, and my hope was you gained an equal enjoyment. And that in the future, we could continue to meet one another, though in the capacity of..." Vision came to a frustrated halt and closed his eyes, and Wanda squeezed his hand reassuringly.   
  
"Vis. It's me. You can ask me anything."    
  
He tried to steady suddenly ragged breathing and turned to face her, looking into her eyes earnestly. She could wee his determination to do this properly.   
  
"You have always been patient with me Wanda, more patient than I perhaps deserve. There is no prescience for this, I am aware, but- regardless, since we were parted I can no longer deny that my feelings towards you have fallen into distinctly passionate direction, and of all the sensations I have experienced throughout my life, this is the one I would most like to explore. And so, I wondered if you might... explore with me, and we might perhaps... be considered officially dating."   
  
This was not a question Wanda had to give a great deal of thought to.   
  
"The answer to all of the above is yes." Wanda kissed Vision's elated grin, not even bothering to hide her delight that Vision had just admitted to feeling _passionate_ about her. Exactly that emotion matched the way she kissed him, until she pulled back and realized the disguise had slipped, and the mindstone gleamed along with the silver lines of vibranium down his cheeks. Wanda hastily shot a hex at a nearby trash can and sent it spilling nosily to the ground to engulf the attention of the nearby tourists, staying quiet and still as Vision concentrated, and restored the everyman guise.   
  
"Thank you Wanda." Vision caught her right hand and brought it up to kiss her fingertips. Wanda just grinned at him, mischief in her eyes.   
  
"We'll just have to work on that."   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took forever, I rewrote it twice and revised it about five times! 
> 
> The most fun aspect of writing this chapter was studying photos of Paul Bettany's face (both human and Vision). It was an exceptionally pleasant use of research time :) 
> 
> On Tony: I know that people who love Tony can get awfully defensive when he's not painted in a positive light, and you're free to your own alternating opinions and to comment on them if you wish! There is just literally no way you're going to convince me that Tony was in a healthy place after CW (especially from what I saw of his treatment of Pete in Spidey Homecoming) with Rhodey being injured and more than half his team having turned their backs on him. But IMO one of the reasons Tony's so relatable as a character is because he's constantly screwing up and that's part of his appeal for me. I actually love it personally because I see Tony as an inherently flawed person and always will - he messes up, and we get awesome movies of him and his teammates fixing the world again, because in the words of Thor 'That's what heroes do'.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm aware that there's a bit of a debate about Vision portraying himself as human, with some people seeing it as an insult that he would hide himself when his true form is beautiful and shouldn't have to be hidden. I do agree with the last part, but I personally believe there is no way he would permit his secret meetings with Wanda to ever endanger her, and so I started thinking about Vision's thought process before adapting his disguise. I see this as happening fairly early on in their relationship and being one of those hurdles they had to overcome. 
> 
> For the record I personally find Paul Bettany attractive as Vision, as himself, while playing with fire, sprouting angel wings or forehead crosses, and even Dryden Vos with his face stripes and bloodshot eyes.


End file.
